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Last month, Monsanto was recognized at National FFA Convention as one of the five platinum sponsors of the National FFA Foundation in Louisville, Ky. Check out our infographic highlighting a few of the focus areas Monsanto supports within the FFA sponsorship.

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The Real Deal: Explaining Monsanto's Refuge-in-the-Bag Concept

Planting refuges is important to ensure insect populations do not become resistant to the B.t. gene. The EPA requires for most B.t. products that a separate “structured” refuge be planted in or near the field containing the B.t. crop. This requires purchasing and planting seeds from separate bags. On top of that, the requirements on how the refuge must be structured can be complex and time consuming for growers.

Monsanto hopes to simplify this process for growers with the refuge-in-the-bag (RIB) concept. This RIB concept involves mixing the refuge seed with the B.t. corn seed so a farmer has everything he or she needs in one bag.

“Refuge-in-the-Bag will be a new solution for growers,” Holly Butka, Monsanto corn traits product lead, said. “RIB puts the refuge that’s required for IRM into the same package or container as the fully traited seed. It really is just a very convenient way for growers to manage their planting – something that saves them a bunch of time and takes the compliance questions and issues off of the growers and moves them to the manufacturing plant.”

Monsanto has been studying the concept of RIB for more than 10 years.

“It’s important to point out this is an investment,” said Butka. “Not only has Monsanto spent a lot of time, energy and resources investigating RIB, but in moving to RIB, we’ll also be modifying our production plants and adding additional equipment to our plants. This is all about convenience for the growers and meeting demands they’ve asked us for.”

“It’s a refuge-in-the-bag for below-ground pests, but it requires a separate 20 percent structured refuge for above-ground pests that still has to be managed and purchased as a separate component,” she said. “A grower still has to make sure he or she is putting out the right amountof non-B.t. seed in the right place, at the right time in order to have an effective refuge.”

Monsanto has submitted RIB options for two B.t. corn products – Genuity® SmartStax™ and Genuity® VT Double PRO® corn – for EPA regulatory approval. Butka said the submission of these products to the EPA is the first of many steps to bring them to market.

Refuge in the Bag: Will That Be One Bag or Two?Seed companies—including Monsanto—have been developing the concept of “refuge in the bag,” or RIB for short, for a number of years now. The goal is to make refuge compliance for insect-protected (B.t.) crops easier and simpler for farmers. How does Monsanto’s RIB concept compare to Pioneer’s? Simply, it’s one bag versus two. Read more

Monsanto Company is a member of Excellence Through Stewardship® (ETS). Monsanto products are commercialized in accordance with ETS Product Launch Stewardship Guidance, and in compliance with Monsanto’s Policy for Commercialization of Biotechnology-Derived Plant Products in Commodity Crops. Genuity SmartStax and Genuity VT Doublt PRO have been approved for import into key export markets with functioning regulatory systems. Any crop or material produced from this product can only be exported to, or used, processed or sold in countries where all necessary regulatory approvals have been granted. It is a violation of national and international law to move material containing biotech traits across boundaries into nations where import is not permitted. Growers should talk to their grain handler or product purchaser to confirm their buying position for this product. Excellence Through Stewardship® is a registered trademark of Biotechnology Industry Organization.

Genuity SmartStax and Genuity VT Double PRO currently require the planting of a structured refuge. Consult the IRM Guide for details.

B.t. products may not yet be registered in all states. Check with your Monsanto representative for the registration status in your state.